Chicago's New Negroes Summary

As a boxer, Johnson went from being an unknown to the first African American heavyweight champion of the world. With little regard for his safety, he destroyed white fighters when blacks were expected to submit to whites. Johnson saw himself as an equal amongst whites; therefore he paid little attention to the chaos he caused throughout his professional career.

After WWI, black people began to portray pride and respect for their race, sparking “The New Negro.” This revolutionary movement is more commonly known as the Harlem Renaissance- a social, cultural, and artistic explosion that took place Harlem, NY. Harlem became the cultural center and attracted many black writers, artists, musicians, photographers, poets, and scholars. Those from the South began to flee from its’ oppressive caste system to escape cruelty. The goal of this movement was to face all the hate they received by accomplishing their freaks and desires without anyone getting in their way.

Chicago is a beautiful city with many different people and things to learn or experience; however, it is a city of segregation, and it has been that way for a long time. Even though it may not be quite visible today, it still happening thorough our city. However, what is so special about ethnicity that people have to hate on each other? Is it because we all are born with different backgrounds or is it because we are raised to hate others? In the history of Chicago’s segregation, we learn about how the whites are seen as the superior beings than others in America. Moreover, we all have seen and learn how race is displayed through our media. Additionally, we all have grown up attaining knowledge from our elders, and we learn about values in life. The society of Chicago are segregated by our history, media, and standards.

It was a time when African Americans made a huge change in the way white society viewed them and their culture. The goals for many black Americans of the movement was, “…to reconceptualize “the Negro” apart from white stereotypes…they also sought to break free of Victorian moral values and bourgeois shame…that might, as seen by whites, reinforce racist beliefs.” (Hutchinson.) They wanted to create race pride and create more opportunities for themselves, it was odd among literary and artistic movements for how closely related it was to civil rights and reform organizations. (Hutchinson.) The Harlem Renaissance was all about breaking down the racism barriers around African American culture that society constructed through literature, music, theater and art. Paul Robeson, “…believed that arts and culture were the best paths forward for Black Americans to overcome racism and make advances in a white-dominated culture.” (Staff.) By breaking down the barriers around African American culture they were breaking down the barriers of

This accident not only jeopardizes Boobie’s career, but also lay down the principal truth behind athletes of colors. Accordingly, Bissinger shows the readers how Blacks are viewed: “Just do to him what a trainer did to a horse…shoot him to put him out of the misery of life that no longer had any value” (Bissinger 67). The imagery illustrates here depicts an oppression tone which translates to the fact that Blacks athletes are solely exploited until they have reach their point of exhaustion. In sum, Bissinger is implying that African American are only accepted in the realm of Odessa football because they are physically capable of bringing victory to the game. However, when black athletes are seen as no longer useful in the playing field, the Permian whites automatically omit them from the hierarchy. Laurence Hurd, an African American Church of Christ minister, compared this prejudice to the period of slavery: “Today, instead of the cotton field, it’s the sports arena” (Bissinger 109). Through the dialogue of Hurd, the reader can clearly see that this comparison reflects the antebellum era, in which labor oppression as well as unfair discrimination were at its prime against people of color. For that matter, Hurd is essentially highlighting the perpetuation of blacks’ exploitation, specifying the continuous prejudice thoughts from the White society. Unfortunately, Boobie fell under this curse of

A group of people who had at one point held no power and position in society were now thriving in the nation, as they spread their culture and ideas. It was the start of an era known as the Harlem Renaissance. This was a more than a literary movement, it was a cultural movement based on pride in the Africa-American life. They were demanded civil and political rights (Stewart). The Harlem Renaissance changed the way African Americans were viewed by society. It, “changes the image of the African-American from rural, undereducated peasants to one of urban, cosmopolitan sophistication”. This era expanded from the early 1920s to the mid 1930s (Wikipedia). It generated great pride in the people

Initially, it seems like a topic that could go in many different directions, and be quite confusing off the bat. But, in all honesty, it was quite easy to follow. Using a term like borders, helped me understand the picture and perspective Professor Baker was trying to portray throughout his work. As the main protagonists Jay Jackson continues to fight and make a name for himself in the ring, he is portrayed in a completely different way than that of a white spectator or boxer. Both the media, announcers, and people involved in the boxing industry, put Jackson in a light that divides him from the spectators. Instead of being referred to as another human being, his race defines who he is, and what he is called. There’s an immediate border created in a scenario like this, between the entertainer and the crowd. In the eyes of “The Sport”, he envisions the boxing ring as the border between him and the fans. A border in this context, depicts one side where an African American is working his tail off to become a success and reach his dream, while the other side includes a bunch of white people looking for a source of entertainment to fill their time and get beat

The Harlem Renaissance was a cultural movement, in the early 1920’s, that involved vibrancies of new life, ideas, and perceptions. The large migration of African Americans northward, after World War I, allowed people of color the opportunity to collaborate in the New York City neighborhood, known as Harlem. This renaissance allowed the city to thrive on a refined understanding and appreciation of the arts. Many individuals were involved in this movement including doctors, students, shopkeepers, and painters who were apart of forming and molding the vibrant and inspirational gem (Holt Elements of Literature – Fifth Course 734). In addition, artists, performers, musicians, and writers gathered together in Harlem to start the beginning of one of the most influential time periods in African American history. However, many factors contributed to the huge impacts of this renaissance, including the effects of the Great Migration, why Harlem was the location for this movement, and the achievements of specific individuals during this time period, such as Augusta Savage.

The history of African Americans seems to be a progressing movement that continues to push itself forward in stages, especially as of the last roughly 100 years. African Americans have over come tremendous adversity since the days of slavery and continue to fight similar obstacles today. A period that experienced much expression and cultural growth was during the Harlem Renaissance. Many great artists, poets, writers, and musicians blossomed during this period that, to this day, has had a lasting cultural impact on not only the African American community, but America as nation. The Harlem Renaissance, which began in the early 1920’s and ended just shortly before the Great Depression, was due largely to a movement known as the Great Migration.

Between 1902 and the Great Depression African Americans began relocating towards the urban North in the Great Migration hoping to escape white supremacy. They gathered mainly in Harlem, New York and except for wallowing in self pity they took advantage of the great majority of their race and decided to take a step out in entertainment (Us History). The Harlem Renaissance was a time of cutting down prejudice and showing the Whites that they have pride in their heritage. Major contributors of this time were Langston Hughes, Countee Cullen, WEB DuBois, Neale Hurston, Louis Armstrong, and Billie Holiday; all of them ranging from writers and actors to musicians in Jazz and Blues. Self determination, group expression, and showing Black pride was what their aim was and decided to show people in paintings, group dances, and writings (Mifflin Harcourt). The Harlem Renaissance was not confined to the United States alone and actually was a large movement in Europe, and the Caribbean. Writers and Poets were determined to show their readers the background they came from, no matter how rough it was, and wanted to show them that their pride was not broken. Langston Hughes, Countee Cullen, and WEB DuBois were three major writers during the time, and contributed to the main them of Racial Pride that conveyed to the rest of their people and gave hope towards a new age where prejudice would be no more; a time where the background you came from didn’t determine who you

The movement known as Harlem Renaissance or the New Negro Movement is an intricate and important event in African-American cultural history. In the second half of the 1920s, with the dramatic upsurge of creativity in literature, music, and art within black Africa, the movement reaches its zenith. By exploring and probing racial themes and analyze what it means to be Black, both ethnic and cultural consciousnesses awaken among blacks and they want to be a new Negro and a new black American identity. Many scholars and writers involve in the movement, like Langston Hughes honored as the “Poet Laureate of Black People”; Alain Locke, an editor of an anthology the New Negro: An Interpretation, regarded as the definitive text in the movement; James

Through encompassing their various talents and abilities, numerous African Americans wound up looking for self-articulation through their works. Numerous players in the New Negro Movement, saw this turbulent time as a chance to expose the prejudiced stereotypes that they had been battling for a considerable length of time. This turned into an inspiration for a national social development, and a re-conceptualization about how several blacks saw themselves.

Back in the early 20th century there was a movement that took the world by storm; it was something that would change the United States forever. This movement was called the Harlem Renaissance. This movement started when African American writers and poets began to explore what it means to be an artist, what it means to be black, what it means to be an American and what it means to be all three of these things at the same time. The author of the “Cultural and Historical Context: The Harlem Renaissance”, Kelly J.Mays, goes on to say that the “Harlem Renaissance, [was] a period of ten or fifteen years in the twentieth century, when an extraordinarily talented group of people came together in uptown Manhattan to celebrate and embody the awakening

However in the summer of 1919, the white community became fearful and uncomfortable with the Great Migration and retaliated with violence. The KKK engaged in several riots and lynching’s that resulted in 83 deaths of African Americans ( Mann HRC). Yet, from those terrible tragedies came great civil rights leaders such as W.E.B. Du Bois and Marcus Gavvery. Their work, believes, and programs inspired racial pride throughout the black community. “Du Bois believed that artistic and literary work could be used as a form of propaganda to help combat racial stereotypes and gain new respect for the race”( Mann HRB). This political agenda sparked change and inspiration for Black entertainment and culture because artists were using their talents to proclaim freedom from the inequality in the country.

In the very beginning of the novel, the narrator most fight and a battle royal in order to give a speech to obtain a scholarship to college. He is pinned against other African-American men, in order to give his speech. He is “black and blue” however the only thing he can think about is giving his speech. His manhood is stripped away, by him allowing himself to be treated as an animal; however, the blindfold placed over his eyes do not strip him from his